Air Products and NICE to work on hydrogen fuelling projects in China

Air Products and the National Institute of Clean-and-Low-Carbon Energy (NICE) have announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that outlays a collaborative effort to potentially work together on hydrogen fuelling projects in China. The MOU was signed on 13 October by representatives of both companies during a ceremony at the opening of NICE America Research, Inc. in California.

NICE, a research and development institute affiliated with the Shenhua Group of Beijing, Peoples Republic of China, has been devoted to the research and development of hydrogen technologies and is interested in developing the hydrogen refuelling business in China with major global partners. Air Products has extensive hydrogen fuelling experience in the United States and globally, is the largest hydrogen supplier in the world, and also has a leading global position in the hydrogen fuelling and infrastructure market.

The companies agree in the MOU to jointly explore hydrogen fuelling projects, and to identify low cost hydrogen production and distribution solutions for each project.

"We are looking forward to collaborating with NICE in establishing a business structure to support the development of a hydrogen fuelling business in China. We believe both parties to this MOU have strengths, that when combined in a focused approach, can be successful in this developing market," said Marie Ffolkes, President, Americas – Industrial Gases at Air Products.

Commenting on the MOU, Dr. Chang Wei, CEO of NICE, said, "We are pleased to work with Air Products in furthering our hydrogen energy business, and we are very impressed by Air Products' vast experience and tangible results in this area. This MOU formalises our intentions and sets both parties in the direction of mutual benefits and success."

Additionally, beyond hydrogen fuelling projects during the term of the MOU, a longer term relationship to explore other opportunities will be considered. "We believe there are great opportunities in China on large projects in which our expertise in large scale oxygen production could be an asset and we look forward to examining these opportunities," said Wilbur Mok, President, Asia – Industrial Gases at Air Products.

Air Products, the leading global supplier of hydrogen to refineries to assist in producing cleaner burning transportation fuels, has vast experience in the hydrogen fuelling industry. In fact, several sites today for certain hydrogen fuelling applications are fuelling at rates of over 75 000 refills per year. Use of the company's fuelling technology is increasing and is over 1 million hydrogen fills per year. The company has been involved in over 200 hydrogen fuelling projects in the United States and 20 countries worldwide including China. Cars, trucks, vans, buses, scooters, forklifts, locomotives, planes, cell towers, material handling equipment, and even submarines have been fuelled with Air Products' technologies.